Howard Lederer was born into in a family of five in which he enjoyed betting on various card games at a young age. He discovered himself getting very competitive in these particular card games while playing his father. After graduating from high school, Howard decided to put college on hold for a little bit and moved to New York City to participate in some big-time chess. While playing chess, he was brought in to a poker game going on in the back of the room. Howard’s first 2 years were tough as he would play countless hours and do not win most times. He earned some extra money by being an runner for the poker players. He believed he could improve his game by adjusting his life outside of poker. He brought about an effort to acquire more rest and focus attention more on poker.
The actual advancement in his skills began when he began playing at the Mayfair Club in New York City. The Mayfair was a bridge and backgammon association where the best gamblers would often wager against each other. Howard was able to access a few of the best minds in chess. With their assistance, he would sharpen his strategic thinking abilities. Howard applied these strategic concepts to the game of No-Limit hold’em.
Howard also assisted his sister Annie Duke master the game of poker. She was a superb student of the game as she constantly asked questions about the right way to make the proper decision. He told Annie to move out to Vegas and compete in the WSOP tournaments. She is one of the best female players the poker arena ever. He relocated to Las Vegas in 1993 and competed in cash games for the following decade. When the WPT gained popularity, he made the decision to participate in more tournaments.
